Congress MPs upset with Shinde's volte face on Telangana, may breakaway in the event of failure of all-party meet

Nalgonda MP Gutha Sukhender Reddy says by saying that the meeting was meant for only restarting the dialogue, the ministry indicated that there would be no solution to the Telangana issue and the Centre wanted to dodge the issue for an indefinite period.

The all-party meeting proposed to be held by Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde on December 28 to "restart" the dialogue on Telangana statehood issue has led to severe unrest among the Congress MPs from the region, who are getting ready to break away from the party, if the meeting does not find any solution to the contentious issue.

The Union Home Ministry on Wednesday sent letters to eight political parties in the state - Congress, Telugu Desam Party, Telangana Rashtra Samithi, YSR Congress Party, BJP, CPI, CPI-M and Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM), asking them to send two representatives each to the all-party meeting scheduled to be held at North Block conference hall at 10 am on December 28.

The Home Ministry's letter has came as a rude shock to the Congress MPs from Telangana, who were given the impression before the voting on FDI in Lok Sabha last week that Shinde would invite only one representative from each party to the meeting where a road map for the Telangana state formation would be discussed.

The Congress MPs are of the view that if each party sends two representatives, one each from Telangana and Seemandhra regions, the all-party meeting would end up on a disaster note, as the representatives would present express divergent views and the Centre can excuse itself on the plea that there is no consensus among the parties. It would bring the issue back to square one.

What has irritated the Telangana MPs most was the way the Home Ministry claimed that the all-party meeting was being held only at the request of the MP; and that it was only for "restarting" the dialogue on the Telangana issue. The MPs are fuming at Shinde for taking them for a ride by resorting to a complete volte face on the all-party meeting.

"It was incorrect on part of the ministry to say that the meeting was being held at our request. Moreover, the ministry has invited two representatives from each party to the meeting, whereas we specifically asked Shinde to invite only one representative," Nalgonda MP Gutha Sukhender Reddy said on Thursday.

He said by saying that the all-party meeting was meant for only restarting the dialogue, the Home Ministry indicated that there would be no solution to the Telangana issue and the Centre wanted to dodge the issue for an indefinite period.

The Telangana MPs, however, feel that the Congress would be compelled to disclose its stand on the Telangana issue if all the parties clearly spell out their stand. "So far, only the Congress, the TDP and the YSR Congress party have not disclosed their stand on the Telangana issue.

There is every possibility that the TDP and the YSR Congress would come out with their stand at the all-party meeting because of their political compulsions. In such a situation, there will be pressure on the Congress party as well; and it cannot escape from its responsibility," another Congress MP said.

Congress MP from Karimagar Ponnam Prabhakar requested that all the political parties should come out clearly with their respective stands on the Telangana issue, irrespective of the number of representatives they send to the all-party meeting. "That is the only way to end the uncertainty over Telangana," he said.

The opposition parties, too, castigated the Centre for trying to dodge the Telangana issue. TRS president K Chandrasekhara Rao said the Home Ministry's letter indicated that the Centre had no sincerity in resolving the Telangana crisis.

"There is no point in attending the all-party meeting, as it is very evident that the Centre has absolutely no intention of giving Telanana state. It is just a farce," KCR said.

The TRS president met Congress MP G Vivek on Wednesday night and asked him to quit the Congress party to join hands with the TRS. "He also invited the MPs and MLAs of the anti-Telangana parties from the region to join the TRS, so that they could put up a united fight against the Centre," Vivek said.

If the all-party meeting ends up without finding any solution to the Telangana issue, most of the Telangana Congress MPs might desert the party, sources say.